Training your dog to go outside

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mucalum49's avatar

mucalum49

Senior Member

1,639 posts
Sep 8, 2010 10:13 PM
Any tips? I am currently at the apartment alone with my girlfriends dog and I can't stand that half the time it just decides to go inside. We just moved in together and her parents always had the piss pads inside the house so it thinks it is okay to go in the apartment. Currently I am picking the dog up and showing it what it did wrong, spank it, and put it in the bathroom with the door closed and lights off as punishment.
Sep 8, 2010 10:13pm
Fab1b's avatar

Fab1b

The Bald A-Hole!!

12,949 posts
Sep 8, 2010 10:15 PM
Try taking those piss pads outside for him to use and break that habit. I have never understood people that allow their dog to use some sort of pad or something to go in the house. Good luck though. On a sad note I am putting my lab of 13yrs down this Friday because of bone cancer.
Sep 8, 2010 10:15pm
mucalum49's avatar

mucalum49

Senior Member

1,639 posts
Sep 8, 2010 10:17 PM
Sorry to hear that. Thanks for the tip though, I need to try something.
Sep 8, 2010 10:17pm
Fab1b's avatar

Fab1b

The Bald A-Hole!!

12,949 posts
Sep 8, 2010 10:19 PM
Its been so long since I had to potty train my dog but with that habit he has it may be hard. I would think to take those pads outside and then take him back in and show him the door then take him out to them and keep him out there till he goes. Then keep repeating till he gets the point then slowly start to remove the pads till the grass suffices.
Sep 8, 2010 10:19pm
bases_loaded's avatar

bases_loaded

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6,912 posts
Sep 8, 2010 10:23 PM
From the time I got my dog I would take him out every couple hours and immediately after eating(until i could trust him). He never went in the house once, only because he never had the chance. To this day I can leave for 8 hours and there won't be an accident in the house(I dont leave him alone for 8 hours often). Now he goes out in the morning, when I come home for lunch, and once or twice at night(once before bed)
Sep 8, 2010 10:23pm
mucalum49's avatar

mucalum49

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1,639 posts
Sep 8, 2010 10:26 PM
bases_loaded;476498 wrote:From the time I got my dog I would take him out every couple hours and immediately after eating(until i could trust him). He never went in the house once, only because he never had the chance. To this day I can leave for 8 hours and there won't be an accident in the house(I dont leave him alone for 8 hours often). Now he goes out in the morning, when I come home for lunch, and once or twice at night(once before bed)

Lucky, this dog is 10 months old and until about 3 weeks ago my girlfriend or her family has never made an honest attempt to force her outside to go. I've never really been a dog person so the cleaning up after it is wearing thin.
Sep 8, 2010 10:26pm
bases_loaded's avatar

bases_loaded

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6,912 posts
Sep 8, 2010 10:27 PM
yeah youre in a bad spot
Sep 8, 2010 10:27pm
Fab1b's avatar

Fab1b

The Bald A-Hole!!

12,949 posts
Sep 8, 2010 10:28 PM
What kind of dog is it? Smaller dogs have to go more!! Luckily my lab was very good at holding it since I have worked 10 hours days since I first got him in 1997.
Sep 8, 2010 10:28pm
mucalum49's avatar

mucalum49

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1,639 posts
Sep 8, 2010 10:32 PM
Its the most masculine dog ever, a Yorkypoo haha. Little 6lb ball of fur. I'm just job hunting right now so I take it outside every hour or so and sometimes it goes/sometimes not. It was just playing with a tennis ball and just decided to squat on the living room floor. Hence this thread lol
Sep 8, 2010 10:32pm
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Cat Food Flambe'

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1,230 posts
Sep 8, 2010 10:34 PM
All you can do to take them outside every time you think about it - when they just happen to "hit it and git it", praise the hell out of them and reward them with a bit of food (a quarter slice of cheap American cheese works great). They'll eventually figure out that going outside is a good thing. Punishing the furry little menace after the fact doesn't get it - dogs aren't very big on retroactive cognition. Our first puppy learned to wet on the carpet, then run and hide in the basement. :)

Truth be told, most of our puppies were trained by the older dog(s) we already had - they just followed the leader, so to speak.
Sep 8, 2010 10:34pm
mucalum49's avatar

mucalum49

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1,639 posts
Sep 8, 2010 10:38 PM
I definitely try to praise her. After she does well outside I give her a treat. I did read that negative reinforcement doesn't make much of an impression with dogs. I guess I will just learn to be patient and hope she gets it. Here's a pic of the monster I'm dealing with haha:

Sep 8, 2010 10:38pm
Fab1b's avatar

Fab1b

The Bald A-Hole!!

12,949 posts
Sep 8, 2010 10:40 PM
Little piss monster :)
Sep 8, 2010 10:40pm
CenterBHSFan's avatar

CenterBHSFan

333 - I'm only half evil

6,115 posts
Sep 8, 2010 11:45 PM
Smaller dogs also have a hard time holding urine when they get excited. I know bigger dogs can have that problem, but it just seems that smaller dogs have a harder time of it. They get anxious, nervous and happy/excited at the drop of a hat, anyway.

Our latest dog is a long haired chi, she's a rescued dog. When we first got her, she was in the habit of wanting to mark everything she could. It took us a few months to break her of this because she'd done it for so long, she was 5 when we got her. What we did that finally worked for her problem: We didn't let her have a bowl of water constantly. At scheduled times of day, we took her fresh water. When she was done drinking, we took her outside and let her wander around until she pee'd on everything she could get to until there was nothing left to pee. Then we praised her and she was allowed to roam the house. When she broke the routine and marked something - the same routine, only she was put into the office by herself. Eventually, she got the idea that if she pee'd outside, she was welcome to roam the house. If she pee'd inside, she was banished to only one room. Now she has a bowl of water all the time and when she has to go, she'll go to one of the doors and tap it until somebody lets her out. But trust me, we went through a few big bottles of Nature's Miracle and lots of counting to ten in the meantime.
But the key is "the same thing happens every time". If you're not consistant, the dog will never be. Good luck!
Sep 8, 2010 11:45pm
power i's avatar

power i

Senior Member

1,296 posts
Sep 9, 2010 8:22 AM
I have a 5 month old Jack Russell/Rat Terrier mix. He's been pretty easy to house train and the key is to be consistant. Take the dog out every few hours for the sole purpose of going potty. Go to the same place each time. Tell him 'go potty' and don't play with him. Soon when you ask him if he has to go potty, he should go towards the door. After about 6 weeks of this Cletus now goes to the door if he needs to go out. And of course, treats when you come in. :D It's very exhausting but it sure beats cleaning up dog poo.
Sep 9, 2010 8:22am
ZWICK 4 PREZ's avatar

ZWICK 4 PREZ

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7,733 posts
Sep 9, 2010 8:51 AM
and beat its ass if it doesn't want to come in when you tell it to. It works. trust me.
Sep 9, 2010 8:51am
N

Nate

Formerly Known As Keebler

3,949 posts
Sep 9, 2010 11:29 AM
Our dog is 5 months old and has been potty trained for over 2 months now. We bought a small bell and tied a shoestring to it and hung it on the door knob. Every time we took the dog out, we'd ring the bell with its nose. After, literally, a few days, the dog was ringing the bell every time it needed to go to the bathroom. Granted, she does ring it when she just wants to go outside and play but its better than scrubbing piss out of the carpet.
Sep 9, 2010 11:29am
KR1245's avatar

KR1245

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4,317 posts
Sep 9, 2010 12:21 PM
Cat Food Flambe';476507 wrote:All you can do to take them outside every time you think about it - when they just happen to "hit it and git it", praise the hell out of them and reward them with a bit of food (a quarter slice of cheap American cheese works great). They'll eventually figure out that going outside is a good thing. Punishing the furry little menace after the fact doesn't get it - dogs aren't very big on retroactive cognition. Our first puppy learned to wet on the carpet, then run and hide in the basement. :)

Truth be told, most of our puppies were trained by the older dog(s) we already had - they just followed the leader, so to speak.

This. My girlfriend and I had to go through this a couple years ago. Reward it for going outside but dont punish it for going to the bathroom inside. Do you guys use a crate/cage at night or while you're gone? We did this with our golden and it worked out well.
Sep 9, 2010 12:21pm
mucalum49's avatar

mucalum49

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1,639 posts
Sep 9, 2010 4:32 PM
KR1245;476947 wrote:This. My girlfriend and I had to go through this a couple years ago. Reward it for going outside but dont punish it for going to the bathroom inside. Do you guys use a crate/cage at night or while you're gone? We did this with our golden and it worked out well.

Nope, the dog usually sleeps in the bed or she has a little OSU bed that is on the floor. She doesn't really do much but lie around on our bed or the couch when we are gone. Thanks for the help, I actually forgot about this thread till I just took her outside.
Sep 9, 2010 4:32pm
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Belly35

Elderly Intellectual

9,716 posts
Sep 9, 2010 5:05 PM
Rub their nose in it, slap their ass and send them outside
If they start to go to the door and go outside give them a big hug and good dog..lots of love

From a former dog trainer of 3 Obedience CDX Champions Golden’s and 2 UDX Champions Golden’s
Sep 9, 2010 5:05pm
Heretic's avatar

Heretic

Son of the Sun

18,820 posts
Sep 9, 2010 5:09 PM
Show by doing.

If you walk outside and do your business in your yard/on the sidewalk/etc., the dog will learn that's the way to be.
Sep 9, 2010 5:09pm
Belly35's avatar

Belly35

Elderly Intellectual

9,716 posts
Sep 9, 2010 5:26 PM
Heretic;477423 wrote:Show by doing.

If you walk outside and do your business in your yard/on the sidewalk/etc., the dog will learn that's the way to be.
There is some truth to that Me and the guys (two male goldens) sometimes share a early morning piss.... I still have not gotten the hang of rubbing my ears in the grass yet....
Sep 9, 2010 5:26pm
tk421's avatar

tk421

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8,500 posts
Sep 9, 2010 6:54 PM
Just as long as you don't rub your ass on the ground.
Sep 9, 2010 6:54pm
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j_crazy

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8,372 posts
Sep 10, 2010 2:39 PM
Belly35;477447 wrote:There is some truth to that Me and the guys (two male goldens) sometimes share a early morning piss.... I still have not gotten the hang of rubbing my ears in the grass yet....

this made me lol.


back to the topic, we used the p pads when the pup was YOUNG, put them by the door so he was always trained to go to the door (or that area) when he had to go. when we first took the pads away we had to watch him because he would just go to the door and piss, but once we got him to the point where he knew to let us know, it was easy breezy. seems like your pup might be a little old to start this training, but it's worth a try.
Sep 10, 2010 2:39pm
mucalum49's avatar

mucalum49

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1,639 posts
Sep 10, 2010 3:18 PM
She's actually gotten better in the last 2 days. No accidents in the house. If I'm gone she has went on her p pads or outside. Maybe I was just impatient but shes starting to remember what she gets when she goes outside. After we walk in the door she goes toward the pantry where her treats are. When she doesn't go outside she doesn't walk over there. I'll pray this keeps up but I will keep this thread in mind if it doesn't.
Sep 10, 2010 3:18pm